The revelation was made last Thursday, October 10, by the hospital management during a meeting with the principal Psychiatrist department at the Gulu mental units.
Bruno Atyang the principal psychiatrist at Gulu Mental Units says that due to the shortage of medicine at the mental units, patients are Screaming and running around which is leading to an increase in their health.
Atyang said that the hospital has run short of essential drugs like Chlorpromazine and Haloperidol which help cool down the patient’s behaviour once he has been injected.
He also added that some parents who cannot afford to buy drugs for their patients because it is expensive have made their patient interrupt their treatment, causing their mental illness to increase.
Sharon Amono, one of the nurses at the Gulu Regional Referral Hospital said there is a need for Community outreach programs and using media to help in passing information about the danger of mental health so that the support can be provided.
She however appealed to members of the public to desist from drugs and Alcohol to help in reducing mental health in the region of Achoil.
one of the parents at the hospital, Concy Atto says that as a parent they don’t have a choice but to go and buy drugs in pharmacies for their patients. She revealed that the minimum cost of treating a patient with a mental health condition costs between shillings 60,000 and 365,000 per month.
Achola Kevin, a patient at mental units says that the government should come with full support for the patient of mental health as ways to prevent the spread of mental problems in the region.
Kevin however appealed to the government through ministries of Health to help in providing some food for the people who can’t afford to take care of their patient at the hospital.
According to the latest World Health Organization, at least 7.4 of Ugandans are affected by common mental disorders, particularly depression, anxiety and Alcohol use disorders.
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